Umphrey's McGee
Spring is right around the corner, and everything seems to be warming up this week. The calendar includes: the Wild & Scenic Environmental Film Festival; talks by Warrington Colescott, Catherine Malabou, V.S. Ramachandran, John Milton Cooper, and Mary Beard; and, live music by Vetiver, Matias Aguayo, Deadstring Brothers, Laarks, Umphrey's McGee, Eroica Trio, and Tally Hall.
Monday 3.8
NOTEWORTHY: Eisenhower Tunnel opens, 1973.
BIRTHDAYS: Alt-folk-rock singer-songwriter Shawn Mullins, 1968.
Tuesday 3.9
NOTEWORTHY: Author Charles Bukowski dies, 1994.
BIRTHDAYS: Velvet Underground bassist/violinist/vocalist John Cale, 1942; fetching French actress Juliette Binoche, 1965.
High Noon Saloon, 7 pm
Andy Cabic, Vetiver's ringleader, reaches deep into the sounds of '70s AM radio for inspiration, channeling the haze of Woodstock's aftermath while applying a postmodern brand of astral fog, especially on 2009's Tight Knit. His newest Sub Pop label mates, Milwaukee quartet Jaill, open the show with sing-along-style psych-pop.
Wild & Scenic Environmental Film Festival
Majestic Theatre, 7 pm
This touring program features selections from Nevada City, Calif.'s annual eco-movie confab (see Movies).
Wednesday 3.10
NOTEWORTHY: Willard Scott debuts as Today Show weather forecaster, 1980.
UW Memorial Union, 6:30 pm
The legendary satiric printmaker and former UW art professor talks about The Prints: A Catalog Raisonne, 1948-2008, the beautiful new book that accompanies the Milwaukee Art Museum's retrospective opening in June.
Chazen Museum of Art, 7:30 pm
In a Humanities With Boundaries lecture called "Is Plasticity a New Name for Freedom?," the French philosopher talks about science and emancipation.
Wisconsin Union Theater, 7:30 pm
Te UW's Distinguished Lecture Series presents the University of California neurologist, whose book Phantoms in the Brain was the basis for a Nova special.
Inferno, 9 pm
As one-half of Cologne, Germany's Closer Musik, Aguayo spliced and diced his way to some of the tightest minimal techno tracks of the early 2000s. Now he's shifted his attention to the sounds of Buenos Aires and his native Chile to craft electronic pop gems with a distinctively Latin kick.
High Noon Saloon, 9 pm
The Brothers infuse their rock 'n' roll with a bit of country, a dash of blues and a hint of the great garage rock that hails from their hometown of Detroit. With Blueheels.
Project Lodge, 9 pm
The indie-rock quartet used to venture out of Eau Claire only occasionally. Now they're emerging from their shells and touring the country to support their debut album, An Exaltation of Laarks.
Thursday 3.11
BIRTHDAYS: Unworried & happy jazz singer Bobby McFerrin, 1950.
Wisconsin Veterans Museum, 7 pm
The UW historian emeritus discusses his new book, Woodrow Wilson: A Biography, the first major biography of the 28th president in more than 20 years.
Chazen Museum of Art, 7 pm
In this UW Year of Humanities lecture, Cambridge University classics scholar Mary Beard talks about ordinary life in the famous Roman city, chillingly preserved by volcanic ash in A.D. 79.
Orpheum Theatre, 7:30 pm
While it definitely draws a hippie jam-band crowd, Umphrey's gains its edge -- and its inspiration -- from the example of groups like King Crimson and Iron Maiden.
Wisconsin Union Theater, 8 pm
Founded in 1986, the sought-after piano trio retained the same lineup until 2007, when violinist Susie Park joined the combo. Tonight they play music of Beethoven, Dvorak and Joan Tower.
Frequency, 9 pm
The five-piece from Ann Arbor are known almost as much for their colored ties as their whimsical indie rock. They'll share selections from their 2005 release, Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum, which has become less "indie" but no less fun since being rereleased by Atlantic Records. Also playing: Jukebox the Ghost and Skybox.
